


The Definition of Happiness

by BroomballKraken



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Family Fluff, M/M, Post-Game(s), Raphael Week (Fire Emblem)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:20:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25118278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BroomballKraken/pseuds/BroomballKraken
Summary: It’s their daughter’s 5th birthday, and as they celebrate, Raphael is pretty sure that he never truly knew the definition of real happiness until Dedue came into his life and decided to stay.Written for Raphael Week 2020 Day 3, Prompt: Family
Relationships: Raphael Kirsten/Dedue Molinaro
Comments: 7
Kudos: 31





	The Definition of Happiness

**Author's Note:**

> My first contribution to Raphael Week is some tooth-rotting domestic Raphadue fluff, featuring the fan child that I came up with for them, Magnolia! Thanks for reading!

“Magnolia, please put your shoes on. Your socks will get dirty if you play outside in them.”

“Okay, Papa!”

“Have fun, dear.”

Raphael was just walking through the door to their house as Dedue finished speaking, and he had to quickly step to the side to avoid being barreled into by his daughter, who quickly slipped her shoes on (the wrong feet) and rushed out the door. Raphael laughed and stuck his head out the door behind her.

“Hey, Maggie! Don’t get too tired before your birthday dinner! Wouldn’t want you to sleep through it!” he yelled after her. The rambunctious, pig-tailed red-head turned to look at him, flashing a gap-toothed grin.

“I’ll be fine, Daddy! I can play all day long and still be wide awake!” Magnolia boasted with a vigorous nod of her head, and Raphael laughed as she turned around and headed for the large barn that sat across the backyard.

As the last few chuckles rumbled through his chest, Raphael went back inside, smiling when he saw his husband working away in the kitchen. Breathing in deeply through his nose, Raphael could smell the cake baking away in the oven, and his mouth started watering in anticipation.

Raphael crossed the room and came up behind Dedue, his arms slipping around his waist as he pressed a few kisses into his neck. Dedue hummed and turned his head, his long silver hair tickling Raphael’s nose, and Raphael found his lips captured in a tender kiss. He smiled against Dedue’s lips as his arms tightened around his husband.

Eventually Raphael pulled away, placing one more quick kiss on Dedue’s bearded cheek. “Hey hun! It smells really good in here! Maggie’s gonna love her cake!” Dedue chuckled as he picked up a wooden spoon and resumed stirring the contents of the large bowl on the counter.

“Thank you, darling. I think she will love it too,” Dedue said, “Did you get the dogs all fed?”

Raphael nodded enthusiastically before resting his chin on Dedue’s shoulder. “Yep! Watered and weeded the garden too! You’ve been working hard all day cooking and baking, so I wanted to lighten your load as much as possible.”

“I appreciate that, Raphael.”

“Anything for you, love!”

Dedue turned around in Raphael’s arms and pressed their foreheads together, his hands reaching up to gently cup Raphael’s face. His gentle fingers felt nice as they ran through his beard, and Raphael let out a content sigh as he gazed adoringly into Dedue’s seafoam eyes.

“It is hard to believe that Magnolia is turning five already,” Dedue mused, his nose brushing lightly against Raphael’s, “It feels like only yesterday that we brought her home as a newborn.”

“Yeah, time sure flies! It’s been a wild ride, this whole parenting thing.”

“Indeed, but I would not trade it for anything.” Dedue paused to press his lips against Raphael’s in a quick, tender kiss. “You and Magnolia are irreplaceable precious to me, and you both have made my life truly a blessed one filled with almost overwhelming amounts of love and happiness that I once did not think that I deserved. I love you with all of my heart, my sunshine.”

Raphael’s eyes became misty as he listened to Dedue speak. They really had been through a lot together; attending the academy, fighting in a war, and afterwards recovering from the resulting trauma as they led the rebuilding efforts in Duscur. Raphael knew all of Dedue’s heartbreaking past and his deep insecurities that he had hidden quite well from everyone else. And he would never, ever question the fact that he had fallen head-over-heels in love with Dedue, and that love would never fade as long as Raphael’s heart continued to beat inside of his chest. He could never have imagined that his first, completely innocent encounter with Dedue in the monastery greenhouse all those years ago would lead to where he was now: overwhelmingly happy, fulfilled, and unconditionally loved.

“Aw, sweetheart! You’re gonna make me cry if you keep saying that kind of stuff!” Raphael gushed, as he removed his arms from Dedue’s waist to instead snake them around his neck. “I love you too, Dedue, forever and always.” Raphael’s voice dropped to a whisper, and he kissed Dedue again, smiling against his lips when Dedue wrapped his arms around him in a tender embrace.

“Beefsteak! Gimme back my shoe!”

Raphael pulled away from Dedue and turned around just in time to see Beefsteak burst into the house through the large dog door. The Saint Bernard rushed into the living room and hopped onto the couch, looking absolutely pleased with himself as his tail wagged vigorously behind him. Raphael took note of the little shoe that was sticking out of Beefsteak’s mouth, and he chuckled and shook his head.

Magnolia suddenly threw open the door that Beefsteak came through only moments before, panting heavily as her face scrunched up with annoyance. She spotted Beefsteak on the couch and let out a shout as she sprinted across the kitchen, but she stumbled and started to fall.

“Watch it!” Raphael quickly scooped Magnolia into his arms before she could hit the floor. She blinked in surprise as Raphael cradled her, before she burst into a fit of giggles.

“Yay! You saved me, Daddy!” she said, and Raphael raised an eyebrow at her.

“I sure did! You gotta be more careful. You could’ve hurt yourself, you know.” Magnolia averted her gaze for a moment, and she fiddled with the hem of her dress.

“I’m sorry...I’ll be more careful next time,” she mumbled, and Raphael smiled, kissing her forehead.

“It’s all good, as long as you mean it.” Raphael peppered a few more kisses over Magnolia’s face, and she fell into a fit of giggles.

“That tickles!” she said, another delighted squeal escaping her when Raphael rubbed his bearded cheek over hers.

“Oh does it now?” Raphael teased and he continued his relentless assault by rubbing his beard over her neck. Magnolia giggled and wriggled in his arms, trying in vain to escape her dad’s clutches.

Raphael heard Dedue laugh behind him, and his husband was suddenly hovering over Raphael’s shoulder. Raphael glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, and saw a rare, mischievous glint in those beautiful eyes of his.

“Magnolia, you might be pleased to find out that you are not the only ticklish one here.” Raphael’s eyes widened in realization, but it was too late, and he yelped when Dedue’s fingers jabbed into his sides.

“H-Hey! That’s cheating!” Raphael protested, his booming laughter filling the room as Dedue continued to tickle him. Magnolia let out a surprised gasp.

“Daddy, you’re ticklish too?!?” she said, her blue eyes wide as saucers at this incredible revelation. A devilish grin spread across her face, and she pressed her small fingers against Raphael’s neck. Raphael laughed as she relentlessly tickled him, and when tears started to leak out of the corners of his eyes, Dedue took pity on him and pulled Magnolia into his arms.

“I think that is enough, dear. Give your poor dad a break.” Dedue said. Magnolia pouted, but a smile crossed her face again when Dedue set her down, and she placed a hand on one hip and pointed at Raphael.

“Okay, but you better be ready, Daddy, ‘cause I’m gonna tickle you good next time!” she said, giggling when Raphael growled playfully and lifted his arms in front of him as if he was going to try and catch her. He laughed when she ran off into the living room, and she suddenly gasped.

“Oh no! Beefsteak! Dahlia! My shoe is not a treat!”

Raphael shared a look with Dedue, who chuckled and shook his head. Leaving Dedue to continue making Magnolia’s cake, Raphael went into the living room, where Magnolia was trying to tug her shoe from Beefsteak and Dahlia, who both had a tight hold on opposite ends.

“Okay you two, you know better than to chew on shoes!” Raphael scolded, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared down the two large dogs. They both let out a couple of guilty whines, and they’re jaws slowly opened, letting the shoe fall to the floor with a wet ‘plop!’

“Eww, that’s gross!” Magnolia’s face scrunched up with disgust as she pinched a still dry spot of the shoe between her fingers and held it up. Raphael opened his mouth to respond, but he was cut off by a loud knock on the front door. As Magnolia continued to stare dubiously at the soggy shoe handing in front of her, Raphael crossed the room to answer the door.

“Hey Raph! Long time no see!”

“Maya! You’re here early!”

Raphael let out a jovial laugh as he lifted his sister into the air and gave her a tight hug. She hugged him back, and when she was set back onto her feet, she was set upon by Beefsteak and Dahlia, who gave her many sloppy dog kisses. A moment later, Magnolia nudged Raphael and the dogs out of the way and squealed happily.

“Auntie Maya! You made it!”

Maya grinned at Magnolia and placed a hand on her head to ruffle her hair. “Of course, squirt! I wouldn’t miss my favorite niece’s birthday for anything.”

“But I’m your only niece!”

“Haha, you’ve got that right!”

Magnolia giggled as she hugged Maya’s legs, and she gazed up with wide, hopeful eyes. “Did you get me a present?”

“Well yeah. It’d be silly not to get a present for such a cute and well-behaved little lady like yourself.”

A rumbling chuckle came from the direction of the kitchen, and Raphael looked up to see Dedue lift a hand to his face, looking to be trying to stifle any more laughter. Their eyes met across the room, and Raphael a soft smile spread over his face. Dedue mirrored his smile, and even though they had been married for quite sometime now, the sight still left Raphael speechless and made his heart race.

“Oh wow! What a cool painting!”

“You like it? I managed to be in the right place to see the wyvern migration last year, so I painted it for you.”

“I love it! Thanks Auntie Maya!”

Maya knelt down so that Magnolia could easily jump into her arms and give her a tight hug. When they parted and Maya stood back up, Dedue walked into the room and took a turn hugging his sister-in-law.

“It is good to see you, Maya.” Dedue said when he pulled away, “Will you be staying long?”

“Well, I’ve really got nowhere else to be,” she mused, shrugging nonchalantly, “I don’t really want to impose too much on you guys, though.”

“It is no trouble at all. Please stay as long as you would like.”

“Yeah!” Magnolia interjected, wrapping her arms around Maya’s legs, “Stay Auntie! We got some new doggies that you haven't met yet!”

“Oh do you now? Well, you’ll definitely have to show me!”

“Yay!”

“That will have to wait,” Dedue interrupted, gesturing towards the kitchen, “Dinner is ready, and after we can have your birthday cake, Magnolia.”

“Yay! Papa’s cakes are the best!” Magnolia said, grabbing Maya’s hand as she tugged her eagerly into the kitchen. Raphael watched with an amused grin on his face; his family brought such joy to his life, and it was a wonder that he ever knew the definition of happiness before Magnolia came into the picture.

“Darling.” Raphael was snapped from his thoughts and found that Dedue was standing before him. Ah, that’s right. He knew the definition of happiness, because ever since Raphael had confessed his feelings for Dedue, long ago in the greenhouse at Garrag Mach, Raphael had a well of infinite happiness as long as his loving husband was by his side.

“Will you go and get our presents for Magnolia?” Dedue continued, and Raphael nodded, but paused for a moment to wrap his arms around Dedue and kiss him tenderly.

When Raphael pulled away, Dedue was staring at him with a raised eyebrow, his cheeks flushed a slight pink in color, leaving Raphael a bit entranced by the beautiful sight. “Raphael?”

“Ah, right, I’ll go get them now!” Raphael said quickly, and he hurried off to their bedroom, before the urge to kiss his husband breathless prevented him from doing so.

After an evening of great food and family bonding, Maya retired for the night, as she was a bit worn out after her long journey. Raphael eventually found himself sitting in bed alongside Dedue, with Magnolia nestled in between them as they read some of her brand new books together.

“...and they lived...happily ever after!” Magnolia read, a beaming smile crossing her face as she closed the book. “That one was amazing! I wanna be a brave hero, just like the wyvern knights in the story!”

“You can do anything you want, Maggie!” Raphael said as he ruffled her hair, “You just gotta work hard for it and never give up.”

“Really?” Magnolia’s eyes went wide for a moment, before her eyebrows scrunched up thoughtfully. She went quiet and crossed her arms over her chest, and Raphael shared a glance with Dedue, who only shook his head and shrugged.

“Daddy! Papa!” Magnolia suddenly shouted, springing up onto her feet and turning around. She placed one hand firmly on her hip, and pointed her finger at her parents. “I know what I want for my birthday next year!”

“Uh, already?” Raphael blinked and cocked his head to one side, “But your birthday this year isn’t even over yet!”

“But this is important,” Magnolia said. Her gaze moved down to her feet, before her head jerked back up, an odd look of determination in her bright blue eyes.

“I want a baby wyvern!”

Raphael just stared at his daughter for a moment, completely dumbstruck. She wanted a _what?_

“M-Magnolia, sweetheart,” Dedue said, and Raphael turned to see that his husband’s face had paled slightly, and his jaw was set in a rare grimace. “That might not be possible…”

“Aww, why not?” Magnolia said, pouting as she crossed her arms over her chest, “I’ll be really good! I’ll make sure to never, ever do anything bad again!” Raphael turned his head to hide a goofy grin, and Dedue just sighed and shook his head.

“We will...talk about it.”

“Yay!”

“That is not a yes.”

Magnolia didn’t seem to mind, as she giggled and flopped back onto the bed, snuggling up against Raphael. She yawned sleepily and looked between her parents with a pleading expression.

“Papa, Daddy, can I sleep with you tonight? Pretty please?” Raphael chuckled and glanced at Dedue, who smiled softly and nodded.

“Of course. Just because it is still your special day.” Dedue said, and Magnolia let out a triumphant ‘hah’ as she wiggled under the covers and let Dedue tuck her in.

“Hehe, thanks,” she mumbled, yawning again as she curled up, her eyes slowly slipping shut, “I love you Daddy. I love you Papa. Today was the best...birthday...ever…” Her voice trailed off to some incoherent mumbling, and soon the birthday girl was sound asleep.

“Whew! She’s quite a handful sometimes!” Raphael said, his voice dropping to a whisper so as not to disturb Magnolia.

A low chuckle rumbled through Dedue’s chest, and he leaned over to press his forehead against Raphael’s. “I agree. She seemed to enjoy her birthday.”

“Oh yeah, I’m really glad she liked the books that I picked out for her. Er, but I didn’t think she’d get so attached to the wyvern riders like that…” Raphael scratched at his beard as a sheepish grin crossed his face, and Dedue shook his head.

“Maybe she will forget about wanting a wyvern by next year. She is far too young for that.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Maybe if she still wants to be a wyvern rider when she’s a lot older, we can look into it for her.”

“We will see.”

Raphael could sense the apprehension in Dedue’s tone, so he leaned over to place a chaste kiss on his lips. Dedue hummed contently as he returned the kiss, and when Raphael broke the kiss, his golden eyes gazed deep into Dedue’s beautiful seafoam green, and a swell of warmth flooded through his chest.

“Thank you, Dedue,” Raphael said, a tender smile crossing his face as he caressed Dedue’s cheek with the back of his hand, “for loving me, and Magnolia. For making me the happiest man in the world for all these years that we’ve been together. I didn’t really think that I could be this happy. Sometimes I think I might explode or something!”

Dedue’s eyes widened slightly, before he chuckled and placed his hand over Raphael’s. Dedue’s gaze never left Raphael’s as he lifted his hand to his mouth and placed a kiss on his knuckles, before entwining their fingers together.

“My darling sunshine, I should be the one thanking you.” Dedue’s fingers brushed over Raphael’s wedding ring, and Raphael noticed that his husband’s eyes had become quite misty. “I once did not care for my own life, but you were the one to show me how precious my life truly was, and is, and will always be. I do not think I would be as happy as I am now without you by my side, helping me raise our beautiful daughter.”

“Aw, hon, you’re making me blush,” Raphael teased, and Dedue laughed as they kissed once more, and they settled down on the bed, making sure that Magnolia had enough room between them.

“I love you, Dedue.” Raphael whispered.

“And I love you, Raphael. Always.”

They shared one final kiss goodnight, and Raphael gave little Magnolia a peck on her forehead, before he extinguished the candle on the nightstand and closed his eyes. He had no trouble slipping into a pleasant slumber, and that might have had something to do with the fact that he was snuggled up closely with the two people who would always make him the happiest man in the world.


End file.
